The Guinean people aren’t thrilledOct 21st 2019NAIROBIFOR YOUR average African strongman, constitutions can be a bore. They usually require you to tolerate opposition parties and pay lip service to human rights. Worse, they often restrict how long you can stay in power. Fortunately for aspiring autocrats, they can be subverted. Since 2002, 11 African leaders have bulldozed through constitutional niceties to remain in office beyond their sell-by dates. Guinea’s president, Alpha Condé, is hoping to become the 12th. It is little surprise that thousands of Guineans have taken to the streets to protest.Mr Condé should be stepping down next year, having served two five-year terms, the constitutional limit. But he hints that he would like to stay on. Doing so will not be easy. West Africa takes term limits more seriously than do other parts of the continent. The region’s 15-member bloc, the Economic Community of West African States, has a record of bringing miscreants into line. Five leaders in the region have tried to overstay their welcome in recent years. Only one—the late Gnassingbé Eyadéma of Togo—succeeded in 2002.Choose us for news analysis that respects your time and intelligenceSubscribe to The EconomistWe filter out the noise of the daily news cycle and analyse the trends that matterWe give you rigorous, deeply researched and fact-checked journalism. That’s why Americans named us their most trusted news source in 2017Available wherever you are—in print, digital and, uniquely, in audio, fully narrated by professional broadcastersThis website adheres to all nine of NewsGuard‘s standards of credibility and transparency.ORContinue reading this articleRegister with an email address